Chapter 139: The Poor Ling Xu

Ling Xu held his silver spear tightly, his face dark with displeasure.

It was the first time he had ever heard someone call for a pause in a fight because they hadn’t had breakfast.

Even from a distance, the irresistible aroma of grilled meat wafted into his nostrils. How infuriating! Eating barbecue so early in the morning! Ling Xu’s heart burned with resentment. The elders’ meeting had lasted all night, and he hadn’t eaten a thing; his stomach was utterly empty. Yet here he was, forced to watch some scoundrel devour meat with great gulps right before his eyes.

It was utterly outrageous!

He vowed that later, he would beat out of this damned rogue every morsel he’d just consumed!

Suddenly, his stomach emitted a strange sound. Silence fell instantly around them, and Ling Xu’s face flushed a deep crimson.

These people must have incredible hearing... Damn it...

“Hey, kid, if you’re hungry, come eat with me,” Tang Tian said, turning his face with a friendly smile, waving a piece of grilled meat invitingly toward Ling Xu.

“Who are you calling kid?” Ling Xu snapped, enraged, pointing his silver spear straight at Tang Tian.

“If you’re not hungry, I’ll just eat it all myself,” Tang Tian mumbled through a mouthful of meat.

“Bastard!” Ling Xu cursed fiercely and lunged forward, making a beeline for the barbecue before even sitting down.

Half an hour later, both Tang Tian and Ling Xu wore expressions of utter satisfaction, reclining on the ground with bellies swollen like watermelons. Gu Xue and Mu Lei stood nearby, their faces blank and perplexed—they couldn’t make sense of the scene before them.

Not only were they baffled; the onlookers watching from afar were equally dumbfounded.

“So satisfied!” Ling Xu declared, almost wishing he could just lie down.

“This is the life,” Tang Tian sighed contentedly, his words floating lazily in the sunlight.

“Don’t think one barbecue meal can buy me off,” Ling Xu said, half propping himself up, his expression one of supreme contentment as he lazily added, “But the Grand Elder wants Miss Xue taken back. Don’t try to stop me—I’ll pretend I never met you.”

Mu Lei’s face changed drastically. With Ling Xu’s formidable reputation, anyone who heard that would dare not refuse.

Gu Xue, however, remained remarkably composed.

“Don’t dream,” Tang Tian said just as lazily, “this is my turf. You come here and make a fuss—how am I supposed to be the boss then?”

Ling Xu hadn’t expected his gesture of goodwill to be rejected. Sitting up straight, he grew serious: “Are you serious?”

“Obviously,” Tang Tian replied without even raising an eyelid, his tone so lazy it seemed as if he were half asleep.

“Then there’s no other way!” Ling Xu stood, his expression solemn. “I will never disobey the Grand Elder’s orders!”

The battle spirit within him flared, his silver spear pointed sharply at Tang Tian, his voice turning grim: “Come on! Let’s settle this for real!”

“Hey, you’re not sleepy after eating?” Tang Tian yawned, tears glistening in his eyes, mumbling, “So… sleepy… I need to nap first…”

Ling Xu felt like he was about to lose his mind. “If you don’t get up soon, don’t blame me for being rude!”

“Half an hour, just half an hour…” Tang Tian yawned more loudly.

“Cut the nonsense! Get up and fight! Only the victor has the right to…” Ling Xu nearly wanted to stab Tang Tian several times, but his pride as a martial artist kept him from making a sneak attack.

“Okay, twenty minutes... or ten minutes,” Tang Tian’s eyes brimmed with tears, the overwhelming drowsiness nearly closing them.

Ling Xu was furious beyond belief.

He had never encountered such a shameless scoundrel. Yet even as his spear tip nearly touched Tang Tian, the latter remained unmoved.

So sleepy...

Tang Tian was truly about to fall asleep and didn’t even notice Ling Xu’s threatening motions.

Such an absolute scoundrel existed in this world! Ling Xu’s teeth ground in frustration. Yet his martial pride forbade him from acting deceitfully.

Suddenly, from the corner of his eye, he caught sight of the water well nearby, and his eyes lit up.

Tang Tian’s water bucket was still there. Without hesitation, Ling Xu dashed to the well, set down his silver spear, grabbed the bucket, and filled it to the brim.

By the time he returned to Tang Tian, the latter’s snores had already begun.

Sleeping so fast... Well then, hehehe!

Ling Xu raised the bucket high, and with a splash, poured the icy water all over Tang Tian.

The bone-chilling cold soaked Tang Tian through and through. In his dreams, he felt as if he had plunged into an icy abyss, screaming sharply as he leapt up from the ground.

Seeing Ling Xu’s triumphant grin and the bucket in his hand, Tang Tian immediately realized what had happened.

Tang Tian’s hair stood on end as he pointed at Ling Xu, shouting curses: “I treated you to barbecue, and you douse me with water? You bastard!”

Ling Xu suddenly felt he might have gone too far.

Just as he opened his mouth to explain, Tang Tian lunged at him with a wild roar.

Ling Xu, battle spirit blazing, suddenly realized his hands held only a bucket, not his familiar silver spear. His expression shifted instantly: “Wait—”

Furious Tang Tian struck with a flurry of flying bird whirlpools.

A flock of white birds seemed to swirl toward Ling Xu. But that wasn’t all—Tang Tian’s leg strikes left intersecting blades of light, relentlessly hammering at Ling Xu without mercy.

Ling Xu scrambled to dodge, but Tang Tian’s furious attacks were suffocating.

Ling Xu’s footing faltered under the whirlwind of bird strikes, and the dense leg blades dominated his vision. In desperation, he instinctively raised the wooden bucket.

It shattered instantly!

A razor-sharp blade grazed his nose, drawing blood and sending a cold sweat down his back.

“Hey! Hey! Hey!” Ling Xu shouted, desperate to halt the assault.

But Tang Tian showed no sign of stopping. His onslaught was like a violent storm, pounding Ling Xu relentlessly. Between furious blows, he cursed loudly:

“Kindness repaid with ingratitude! I treated you to barbecue, and you splash me with water!”

“Are you dying to live?”

“You little punk! Listen well—anyone who dares douse me ends up beaten like a dead dog!”

“You’re doomed today! You’ll regret your wicked act for life!”

“Despair, scoundrel!”

...

Poor Ling Xu, whose skills were all honed with his silver-tasseled spear, was now defenseless against Tang Tian’s fierce barrage, struggling to stay upright.

It was a one-sided battle.

When Tang Tian’s massive palm slammed Ling Xu to the ground, followed by a relentless storm of fists, within seconds Ling Xu’s face was utterly distorted.

What in the world...

Everyone watching was stunned speechless, their jaws dropping at the shocking reversal before them.

That was Ling Xu—Silver Spear Ling Xu!

The guy being beaten like a pig’s head...

The one pinned beneath someone else...

The one who could only wail, powerless to fight back...

Heavens, what on earth was going on?

Tang Tian’s furious beating finally released the tension in his chest. Poor Ling Xu lay battered beyond recognition, as if trampled by a herd of elephants.

Tang Tian ceased his assault and glared fiercely at Ling Xu beneath him. “Yield or not?”

“Not yielding? If you’ve got the guts...” Ling Xu retorted angrily.

Without a word, Tang Tian launched another brutal barrage. Ling Xu’s protest was cut off as fists rained down on him for a full thirty seconds before stopping.

“Yield or not?”

“Not yielding!” Ling Xu defiantly declared, “You’ve insulted the dignity of a martial artist...”

Tang Tian sneered with venom: “Hah! You eat my barbecue, then douse me with water, and you talk about martial dignity?!”

Before Ling Xu could respond, Tang Tian unleashed another two minutes of savage beating.

Tang Tian didn’t use his true inner power—only brute force—but even so, each blow was bone-shatteringly painful.

“Yield or not?”

Ling Xu remained silent.

“Ha! No answer?” Tang Tian resumed his furious assault, each punch sinking deep, the slaps echoing as Ling Xu’s face contorted in agony.

“Not yielding? Then I’ll strip you naked and make you stand up,” Tang Tian said, sounding a bit weary but confident.

Ling Xu shouted angrily, “A warrior may be killed, but never humiliated!”

“A warrior my foot!” Tang Tian laughed coldly, reaching for Ling Xu’s belt.

Ling Xu panicked instantly. “Hey! Hey! You can’t do that! You can’t!”

Tang Tian ignored him.

Now terrified at the thought of being exposed naked before the entire city, Ling Xu shivered and finally relented: “I yield! I yield!”

Tang Tian immediately beamed with pride. “Ha ha ha ha! You’ve already yielded, see? No problem at all. Now, call me ‘boss’!”

Utter humiliation!

How could such a wicked person exist in the world?

Ling Xu cursed his fate for accepting this mission...

A true hero doesn’t suffer losses lightly...

“Boss...” Ling Xu murmured bitterly.

“Ha ha ha ha!” Tang Tian’s expression changed instantly. He jumped off Ling Xu, pulled the bruised man up, and warmly patted off the dust on him. “From today on, we’re family! Come on, let’s keep eating barbecue!”

Barbecue...

Hearing those words nearly brought tears to Ling Xu’s eyes.

His life had been ruined by barbecue. He swore never to eat it again.

Frowning darkly, he went to the well to retrieve his silver spear. Seeing his bruised face reflected in the water, his expression blackened.

Bastard...

“Ha ha ha ha, it’s true what they say—you don’t know someone until you fight them!” Tang Tian joked, offering friendship once more.

Ling Xu ignored him and plopped down beside Gu Xue, clutching his silver spear tightly.

Gu Xue, who had remained calm all along, now felt the weight of pressure from Ling Xu’s bitter expression. Suddenly, Tang Tian sat down next to them, laughing: “You doused me with water, I beat you up—we’re even!”

Only beat me up?

Ling Xu’s eyes twitched, and the temperature around them seemed to drop. Gu Xue felt the pressure double.

After a long while, the guards watching realized Ling Xu remained motionless, showing no intention of fighting back.

This...

The guards who had come with Ling Xu broke out in cold sweat and immediately fled to report to the Grand Elder. After some time, they returned, drenched in sweat.

“Lord Ling Xu, the Grand Elder urges you to hurry...”

Without a word, Ling Xu lifted his eyelids slightly and said quietly, “Please inform the Grand Elder that Ling Xu can no longer follow orders. The Grand Elder should find someone more capable.”

The entire scene erupted in shock.

Tang Tian was stunned.

(To be continued)